Philjets, February 05, 2018 - Towards the end of last year, PhilJets’ fleet welcomed a new addition – an aircraft that opens a lot of new possibilities because of its innate versatility.

On December 14, 2017, PhilJets’ new Airbus H145 arrived in the company’s hangar at the Manila Domestic Airport. The event was graced by representatives from PhilJets and aircraft manufacturer Airbus Helicopters.

The arrival of the H145 is a highly anticipated milestone for PhilJets because it is the company’s second twin-engine helicopter. Twin-engine helicopters offer a big step up over single-engines because they are more reliable and safer. Furthermore, the H145’s addition to the fleet heralds a time of excitement for the company because the aircraft gives PhilJets the option to carry out new services for their charter like law enforcement operations, crew transport to oil and gas plants and power lines inspection, among others.

Being the latest member of Airbus’4-tonne-class twin-engine helicopter, the H145 is a state-of-the-art rotorcraft boosted with improved functionalities compared to its predecessors from the EC145 family1.

Measuring 11.69 meters from nose to tail with a height of 4 meters, the H145 sports a noticeably large cabin with a cutting-edge avionics suite which incorporates three large displays and a four-axis autopilot in the cockpit.2

Because of the versatility of the H145, its arrival opens up possibilities for PhilJets to offer new services in their charter and/or improve existing ones.

- Crew transport to oil and gas plants: Because landing pads in oil and gas plants are usually small, transporting crew to and from these plants require an aircraft that is agile and stable—qualities that are possessed by the H145. Because of having two powerful engines, a high-set main rotor, and a Fenestron® shrouded tail rotor, the H145 can operate well even in the presence of strong winds which are common in offshore oil and gas plants.

- Law enforcement operations: Another option that is now available to the PhilJets charter is catering to law enforcement operations. The H145 is well-suited for patrol, surveillance and rescue operations because it can easily be equipped with a forward-looking infrared, searchlight, hoisting mount, daylight camera and connectivity features for communications and data exchange.

- Power lines inspection: The H145 can also be useful in power lines inspection because riding helicopters gives a bird’s-eye view of power lines, thereby enabling users to inspect large spans of area in a short time. Using rotorcrafts like the H145 in power lines inspection enables users to inspect around 300 km of power lines every day and it can also help in reaching places that are hard to access in case such areas are in need of power lines installation or maintenance.

- Improved EMS: Aside from opening the doors for new services under the charter, the addition of the H145 to the PhilJets fleet will enable the company to improve on some of the services that are already offered in the charter. The H145’s qualities like its wide sliding doors and spacious cabin make it well-suited for Emergency Medical Services (EMS). The wide sliding doors make for unobstructed loading or unloading of patients while the cabin offers more room and higher payload capability. The H145 also offers comfort for both patients and medical personnel onboard because it is quiet. It has minimal sound levels during operation, enabling it to do its work without causing distractions to neighborhoods and the areas around hospitals.

To conclude, the H145 is a perfect fit for the Philippine aviation market, making it a very welcome addition to the PhilJets fleet.